EA has added in a new power pass in FIFA 16

The increase in intercepted passes is in part down to the new challenges in picking out your men, and in part down to an increased assertiveness on the part of AI players. This extends to defensive duties too, where you can now rely on other players in your back line to actually help out and press opposing players with a bit more reliability than in FIFA 15. Pace has been given a metaphorical kick in the shins, which helps with stopping tiny, nimble strikers waltzing around everybody, and sheer physical presence can now knock people off the ball. Thankfully this has either been removed, or dialed right back in FIFA 16. Yes, linesmen will still make calls that only a robot could make (knowing when a player is offside by an eyelash) - but at least we’re not taunted by their stupid smug grin every time.

EA has also added in a new power pass. By holding R1 and pressing X, players will now send a bulleted pass along the ground. This can sometimes be a bit too easy to use. On some occasions, the receiver of the pass will struggle to control the ball, sometimes they take the pass as if it were any other normally-weighted pass. The whole point of this particular method of passing is to combat against the opposition players from swooping in on loose balls and cleaning up everything in sight. This feature falls a bit flat. Another new improvement within the game play is jostling and jockeying. It is now a physical challenge between players to get the ball. By using the L2 button, you can out-muscle players who have possession of the ball or you can use L2 to try and keep possession and stave off any physical challenge.

There are some difficult choices along the way as you balance team chemistry against overall rating. But it means that you have a chance to use FIFA's superstars without needing to get very lucky in packs or spend a fortune on the transfer market. There is a fairly significant buy-in price, which means that it's not for the casual Ultimate Team player. But on the flip side, it's a more engaging, entertaining, and wiser investment than simply buying packs as you can earn rewards too. Now, we used the word 'relatively' there for a reason. The only people who'll really be able to notice these gameplay alterations are those that have played FIFA 15 to death, while more casual players won't necessarily catch on without knowing about them beforehand. The franchise gets a lot of flak for its supposed inability to change, but it's hard to argue against the opinion that FIFA 16 represents a major shift in making matches more believable - but it's difficult to say whether its increased realism suits the fact that, at the end of the day, it's a video game representation of a real world sport.

Goalkeepers are also a highlight. Rather than the game presenting shots on goal with binary outcomes where the keeper's canned animation either reaches the ball and blocks it or it doesn't, the ball might be fired with so much pace and spin that it glances off the underside of the keeper's outstretched hand and ends up rolling into the net. It might be that it glances off the underside of the keeper's hand and bounces out for a corner. He might tip it onto the bar. You never know what is going to happen with a shot on goal until you see it happen, and that leads to adrenaline-fueled goalmouth scrambles, surprising outcomes and general entertainment. Of course, all of this discussion is about how the game plays offline.

It’s basically the same, though. And really, that’s okay. Association football, or soccer if you like, is a sport that was codified at some point in the 19th century as “The Simplest Game.” We’re pretty good at digitally replicating it by now. Ten years ago, I was playing Pro Evolution Soccer convinced that there wasn’t much more left to be done in simulating the sport. Here we are now, with FIFA having taken the crown somewhere in the interim, and all that’s left to do is incrementally tweak the game each year. But there's one big difference this time around.

But without a basic career mode, tournaments, quick match, or even a match of the week mode it just feels a little bone dry. If you don't like Ultimate Team you're just not going to stick around for long, despite how well it plays. It seems like a bit of a cynical move on EA's part, and it's a shame because it's a lesser game for it. If you're into Ultimate Team you'll likely find this an incredibly satisfying portable version of the real thing that you can play on the bus.